After fiasco of 2019, Elías determined to reveal his true self

After fiasco of 2019, Elías determined to reveal his true self
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - It's not entirely accurate to say the Nationals never saw the real Roenis Elías last season. "We saw it," manager Davey Martinez said. "The first day. Then after that ..." This is true. Acquired from the Mariners on July 31 to help fix the Nats' major bullpen woes, Elías made his debut two nights later in Arizona, summoned by Martinez with one out in the bottom of the sixth. The lefty got David Peralta to fly out, then struck out Adam Jones. All good,...
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Kieboom adjusting to game speed at third base (Nats lose 2-1)

Kieboom adjusting to game speed at third base (Nats lose 2-1)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - There is a month's worth of exhibition games to play, and there will be countless opportunities for Carter Kieboom to make his case to be the Nationals' opening day third baseman. What happens right now may have little to no bearing on the club's ultimate decision. But every game Kieboom plays, he is going to be scrutinized more than perhaps any other player in camp. And so the 22-year-old wasn't surprised this morning when reporters approached him to ask about his...
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Lineups: Nats vs. Mets in West Palm Beach

Lineups: Nats vs. Mets in West Palm Beach
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - In deciding to delay Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin's first starts of the spring a few days, the Nationals have opened the door for some younger pitchers to get an opportunity to take the mound for the first and second innings this week. Today, that young pitcher will be Wil Crowe, who gets the start against a Mets lineup featuring plenty of regulars. Crowe, a second-round pick in 2017, split last season between Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Fresno, where he...
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Virginia native Snyder gets to enjoy his moment vs. Astros

Virginia native Snyder gets to enjoy his moment vs. Astros
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Brandon Snyder would be the first to admit this was nothing like what the rest of the Nationals experienced the last time they faced the Astros, when the stakes were just a bit higher. While his teammates were hoisting the Commissioner's Trophy in Houston on Oct. 30, Snyder was watching on television with a buddy at his home in Warrenton, Va. He was a member of the organization and knew all the guys who had just won the World Series, but he spent the season playing at...
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Voth succeeds, Fedde struggles in Round 1 of competition

Voth succeeds, Fedde struggles in Round 1 of competition
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Austin Voth, Joe Ross and Erick Fedde all sit next to each other in the Nationals clubhouse this spring. They all hang out together. They all want one another to do well. And yet, each knows the harsh truth: Only one of the three is going to open the season in the Nats rotation. One other is likely to get a spot in the bullpen. Which means one is destined for the minor leagues. "These two guys are my friends, and if I had it my way, I would want them on the team," Voth...
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Strasburg, Corbin, Zimmerman not playing yet (Nats win 2-1)

Strasburg, Corbin, Zimmerman not playing yet (Nats win 2-1)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - They aren't holding anybody back because of injury, but the Nationals are easing a few of their veterans into game action this spring, most notably members of their rotation. Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin won't make a start the first time through the rotation this week, instead throwing live batting practice one more time before debuting in a Grapefruit League game. "It's all putting them in a controlled environment, where they can slow down if they want to,"...
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Split-squad lineups: Nats vs. Astros and Marlins

Split-squad lineups: Nats vs. Astros and Marlins
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Good news: The skies have cleared, the rain is long gone and it should be a beautiful day for baseball. So beautiful, the Nationals are going to play two - at the same time. It's a split-squad day, with half of the guys staying home to face the Astros again while the other half of the roster goes to Jupiter to face the Marlins. t'll be our first opportunity to see two of the pitchers battling for the No. 5 starter's job, with Austin Voth going up against the Astros...
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Unable to replicate October vibe, Scherzer content with '20 debut

Unable to replicate October vibe, Scherzer content with '20 debut
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - If Max Scherzer has proven nothing else, it's that he'll never take the mound with anything less than 100 percent commitment to compete. Having said that, not all starts are created equal. And a start on Feb. 22 can never compare to a start on Oct. 30, even if the opponent is the same. "The last game I pitched was Game 7 of the World Series. And we're talking about spring training," Scherzer said Saturday night after making his 2020 exhibition debut. "So it's a...
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Nats cheered, Astros booed during rained-out spring opener

Nats cheered, Astros booed during rained-out spring opener
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - They came to cheer the defending World Series champs and boo the runners up. And they did so at every possible opportunity. Any mention of the Nationals (technically, the visiting team) tonight in the Grapefruit League opener at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches - a game that wound up getting canceled after two scoreless innings due to a persistent rain that would not go away - was met with rousing cheers from the thousands of red-clad fans who made their way down...
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Castillo has sore shoulder, plus other notes (game canceled)

Castillo has sore shoulder, plus other notes (game canceled)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Nationals' first injury of the spring may not involve a member of the 40-man roster, but it does involve a veteran trying to squeeze his way onto the opening day roster. Welington Castillo, a catcher with 10 years of big league experience, was due to DH in tonight's Grapefruit League opener but was scratched with a sore right shoulder. Davey Martinez said Castillo approached him earlier today and informed him of the ailment. The manager didn't hesitate to give him...
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Lineups: Nats vs. Astros in West Palm Beach (updated)

Lineups: Nats vs. Astros in West Palm Beach (updated)
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - One hundred fifteen days have passed since the Nationals and Astros last took the field, a late October night that will forever bring smiles to anyone who lives in Washington and tears to anyone who lives in Houston. Tonight, both teams return to begin their quest to reach late October again. The Grapefruit League opener is a big deal any spring, but it's never been as big a deal as it is tonight. In a perfect convergence of events, this game between co-inhabitants of...
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Baker still close with Nats: "I left my heart over there when I left"

Baker still close with Nats: "I left my heart over there when I left"
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Dusty Baker stood near one of the practice fields outside FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches on Thursday morning, wearing an Astros cap and pullover, answering questions about the team he now manages. He looked very much at home, very much in his element. The 70-year-old baseball lifer has done everything there is to do in this sport, and yet he has now found perhaps the ultimate challenge of his career: guiding a Houston roster loaded with talent but stained by proof...
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Union chief addresses players' vitriol toward Astros

Union chief addresses players' vitriol toward Astros
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Tony Clark, head of the Major League Baseball Players' Association, visits every club every spring. Those meetings can run long, sometimes topping two hours, depending on the list of topics that need to be discussed. This morning, Clark and his associates with the players' union, walked into the Astros clubhouse at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and did not emerge until nearly four hours had passed. Suffice it to say, this was no ordinary spring training meeting,...
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Handful of Nats regulars will play in exhibition opener

Handful of Nats regulars will play in exhibition opener
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - After more than a week of bright sunshine and temperatures in the mid-80s, the Nationals walked outside this morning to an unfamiliar sight this spring: rain. For the first time in camp, weather altered the club's plans. What should've been a two-hour full squad workout instead was condensed into a quick session that took care of the day's most pressing needs (a group of pitchers throwing live batting practice, moved to the covered batting cages) and little...
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West Palm Beach throws Nationals another parade

West Palm Beach throws Nationals another parade
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - It didn't compare to the parade they threw the Nationals in Washington three days after Game 7 of the World Series. How could it? Maybe there weren't hundreds of thousands of fans lining Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach on Thursday evening. But those who did turn out - and there were plenty who did - were treated to a yet another nice celebration of the 2019 champs, this one in their spring home. "I am very impressed with all the players that are here,"...
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For Fedde, more options mean less opportunity

For Fedde, more options mean less opportunity
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Erick Fedde got a text message from his father in December. The message was brief: "Hey, I was reading an article online saying you have a fourth option." Fedde's reply was direct and didn't mince words: "Dad, don't be dumb. Fourth options are not a thing." Everyone in baseball, certainly younger players who bounce up and down between the minor and major leagues, knows you only have three option years. In other words, you can only be demoted to the minors in three...
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Martinez on today's workout and what he expects Saturday

Martinez on today's workout and what he expects Saturday
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Starlin Castro came to Nationals camp with a revamped swing that results in more balls pulled in the air and fewer balls on the ground, a swing that produced big numbers late last season with the Marlins. But the first live pitcher he had to face here was immune to such tweaks. Castro groaned Wednesday when he found out he was hitting against Max Scherzer, a longtime nemesis when facing him as an opponent. And sure enough, there wasn't much contact to speak of when the...
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Boring, drama-less camp is fine with Nationals

Boring, drama-less camp is fine with Nationals
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Spring training life for the defending champions is a bit different than in previous years. There are questions about trying to repeat. New signs all over the place touting last fall's achievement. Fingers to be sized for championship rings. Everybody's in a good mood, for good reason. But there's something lacking from Nationals camp so far, something that can be found at other camps across Florida and Arizona, something that could be found around here in many...
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Martinez ready to try Robles at leadoff, Turner batting third

Martinez ready to try Robles at leadoff, Turner batting third
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The casual observer should be awfully careful reading too much into a team's lineup during the early days of spring training. With many veterans resting and those who do play often batting high in the order so they can get a couple of at-bats and get out of there, there isn't a whole lot worth interpreting. That said, don't be surprised at all if you see Trea Turner batting third sometime in the next week or so. It doesn't mean he's going to bat third for the...
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"Sore in all the right spots," Scherzer will start Saturday

"Sore in all the right spots," Scherzer will start Saturday
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - Max Scherzer offered up a simple, yet important, takeaway from his first session throwing to live hitters this spring. "I'm sore in all the right spots," he said. For the uninitiated, there's no reason to be alarmed. Scherzer knows the difference between being "sore," being "hurt" and being "injured." Sore is good. Hurt is potentially worrisome. Injured is full-blown panic attack. After a long and grueling season that saw him make a prolonged stint on the...
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